Sumitomo Wiring Systems, Limited

Satoru Nishide

Hajime Kawase

Ryotaro Ishikawa

Takahiro Yoneda

Masahiro Noda

Makoto Fukamachi

Hitoshi Okumura

Osamu Ito

Yuuichi Nankou

Tomoaki Yasuda

Youichi Nankoh

Yutaka Noro

Nori Inoue

Takafumi Kishi

Yutaka Kobayashi

Mitsuhiro Fujitani

Keiichi Nakamura

Hiroyuki Nakata

Osamu Taniuchi

Hikaru Ito

Yuki Hirose

Shunsuke Tanimura

Yuichi Nankoh

Kazuhisa Kondo

A lever () is formed with a separating cam surface () and an escaping space () disposed in a region more distant from a rotary shaft () than the separating cam surface (). The separating cam surface () presses cam projections () of a moving plate () in a direction away from the rotary shaft () to separate both housings () in the process of rotating the lever () to an initial position with the both housings () connected. The cam projections () are accommodated into the escaping space () while being separated from the separating cam surface () in the process of rotating the lever () from the initial position to a connection position with the both housings () separated and the moving plate () located at a protection position.

Lever-type connector

It is aimed to provide a connector capable of ensuring predetermined sealability. A connector is provided with a housing connectable to a mating housing, a seal to be mounted into the housing, and a moving member movable with respect to the housing. The seal has a sealing surface to be held in close contact with the mating housing. The moving member is arranged at a position facing the sealing surface of the seal before connection of the both housings.

Liquid-tight movable connector

A split connector includes a housing () with an accommodating portion () and sub-connectors () are inserted into the accommodating portion (). Terminal fittings () and retainers () are inserted into the sub-connectors (). Guide recesses (L,R) are formed on an inner surface of the accommodating portion () and extend along an inserting direction of the sub-connectors () into the accommodating portion (). Guide projections (L,R) are formed on outer surfaces of the sub-connectors () and fit into the guide recesses (L,R) in an inserting process into the accommodating portion (). Detecting projections (L,R) on outer surfaces of the retainer () are configured not to fit into the guide recesses (L,R) when the retainers () are at a partial locking position but fit into the guide recesses (L,R) when the retainers () are at a full locking position.

Split connector

A terminal fitting () has a rectangular tube () and a wire connecting portion () rearward of the rectangular tube (). Two rib-like stabilizers (F,R) project from the rectangular tube () by closely folding pieces extending from a side wall () of the rectangular tube (). The stabilizers (F,R ) are spaced apart in forward and backward directions. An entrance preventing portion () in the form of a single plate is formed between the two stabilizers (F,R).

Terminal fitting

A terminal fitting () is provided with a box-shaped portion () in the form of a rectangular tube, a tab () projecting forward from the front end of the box-shaped portion (), and a crimping portion () arranged behind and at a distance from the box-shaped portion () and to be crimped and connected to a wire (). An entrance preventing wall () extending obliquely backward in a cantilever manner from an upper wall () constituting the box-shaped portion () is formed in the box-shaped portion ().

Terminal fitting with an entrance preventing wall

A terminal fitting includes a terminal connection part and a crimping part. Paired front-side crimping pieces and a lower plate part constitute a wire barrel portion which contacts core wires exposed outside as a result of removal of coating disposed at an end portion of an electric wire and is crimped so as to surround the core wires. Paired rear-side crimping pieces and the lower plate part constitute an insulation barrel portion which contacts coating at the end portion of the electric wire and is crimped so as to surround the coating. At least one pair of the crimping pieces has a thin portion formed thinner than the lower plate part and contacting the electric wire end when the crimping pieces are crimped. The thin portion is formed at an intermediate portion of each crimping piece except for a peripheral portion.

Terminal fitting and electric wire provided with terminal fitting

A terminal fitting has a base () for receiving a cylindrical sealing plug () mounted on an end of a wire () and crimping pieces (F,R) projecting from opposite lateral edges of the base (). The crimping pieces (F,R) are crimped into connection at different positions of the outer circumferential surface of the sealing plug () in forward and backward directions. The base () is arranged Circumferentially along the lower half of the outer circumferential surface of the sealing plug () from its connected positions with the respective crimping pieces (F,R) and includes receiving portions (F,R) which have lateral edges (E) facing the leading ends of the respective crimping pieces (F,R) in circumferential direction and located at the upper half of the outer circumferential surface of the sealing plug ().

A connector housing () is formed with a mount hole () for a retainer (), and the retainer () is inserted into the mount hole () to lock and retain terminal fittings () inserted into cavities (). Partition walls () partitioning the cavities () adjacent in width direction in the connector housing () are provided with extended walls () projecting into the mount hole (). The retainer () is provided with recesses () at positions corresponding to the extended walls (). A creepage distance between the terminal fittings () adjacent with the partition wall () therebetween is made longer by the extended wall (), whereby the short circuit of the adjacent terminal fittings () can be prevented.

Connector

A female terminal fitting () is provided with a tubular main portion (), into which a mating male tab () is inserted along an axial center A from the front. A resilient contact piece () extends back in the main portion () and has a free end slidable on an inner surface of the main portion (). The inner surface of the main portion () includes a first slide surface () aligned for permitting displacement of the free end of the resilient contact piece () while maintaining a uniform distance to the axial center (A) of the main portion () and a second slide surface () for permitting displacement of the free end of the resilient contact piece () while increasing the distance to the axial center (A) of the main portion ().

Female terminal fitting

A shielding shell () of a male housing (M) and a shielding shell () of a female housing (F) have the same shape, touching portions () of the shielding shells () are such that outer touching pieces () having contact points at the inner sides and inner touching pieces () having contact points at the outer sides are arranged in circumferential direction, and the inner touching pieces () of one shielding shell () and the outer touching pieces () of the other shielding shell () correspond to and come into contacting with each other in radial directions. Since the shielding shell () of the male housing (M) and that of the female housing (F) have the same shape, cost can be reduced.

Shielded connector and shielding shell

A frame () is provided with accommodating chambers () capable of accommodating auxiliary housings (). A small housing () and a supplementary housing () also are provided. The housings () are united by engaging a dovetail groove () and a dovetail projection () to form a united housing () that has an outer configuration common to the auxiliary housings (). The auxiliary housing () and the united housing () can be selectively accommodated into the same accommodating chamber () of the frame (). It is sufficient to prepare a single frame () regardless of whether the small housing () is used for a specific circuit. Thus, different arrangements can be dealt with inexpensively and efficiently.

Divided connector

A female housing () is mounted into a male housing () in a direction substantially normal to a connecting direction of the two housings (), and is inserted from this mount position toward the back side of a receptacle along the connecting direction. A moving plate () is assembled inside the receptacle (), has an opening (A) that is open toward a side from which the female housing () is mounted, and is formed with a guiding wall () for positioning the female housing () before the connection is started by being brought into contact with the upper surface and the opposite side surfaces of the female housing () reaching the mount position through the opening (A).

Connector device

A front mask () can be held at a testing position located before a proper position with respect to a mounting direction of the front mask (). At this testing position, parts of the front ends of connecting portions (S) of smaller female terminals (S) accommodated in smaller cavities (S) located behind the corresponding smaller cavities (S) with respect to the mounting direction are exposed in smaller terminal insertion openings (S), and these smaller terminal insertion openings (S) are used also as testing openings through which probes () for an electrical connection test are inserted. The front mask () also is formed with test openings () where parts of the front ends of the connecting portions (S) of the smaller female terminals (S) accommodated in the frontmost smaller cavities (S) with respect to the mounting direction are exposed when the front mask () is at the testing position.

Connector and a method of assembling it

A connector has a female housing (). A space (S) is formed at the rear of the housing () for accommodating a seal () and terminal accommodating chambers (A) extend forward from the space (S). A rear holder () is mounted on the rear of the female housing () for holding the seal () in the space (S). A lever () is mounted on the rear holder () and can generate a cam action for connecting the female housing () and a mating male housing (). The lever () can be moved further after the housings () are connected for moving the rear holder (). Thus, the rear holder () compresses the seal () into engagement with wires that extend from the female housing ().

A moving plate () has a substantially rectangular bottom portion () and a surrounding wall () projecting from the outer periphery of the bottom portion (). Shake preventing projections () are formed on the opposite outer side surfaces of the surrounding wall () including the shorter sides of the bottom portion () and extend from an upper edge of the surrounding wall () over the entire vertical length. The height of the shake preventing projections () exceeds a corresponding clearance dimension between the surrounding wall () and a receptacle (). A lever () is used to realize a smooth connecting operation by preventing the moving plate () from being inclined while two housings () are being connected.

Growing community of inventors

Yokkaichi, Japan

Satoru Nishide